Principles and Prohibitions of Committee Mark Ups

 

1. Committees do not actually amend measures during their markups; instead a committee votes on what amendments it wishes to recommend to the House.

2. Bills are read for amendment by section or paragraph unless unanimous consent is received to read a bill by title or to consider a bill open for amendment at any point. When a bill is read by paragraph, section, or title, an amendment must be offered at the appropriate time.

3. An amendment must be reduced to writing on demand.

4. An amendment must be read (after it is offered and before it is debated) unless such reading is dispensed with by unanimous consent.

5. Debate is under the five-minute rule -- 5 minutes in favor; 5 minutes in opposition; then Members may offer pro forma amendments, under which they may speak for 5 minutes. This continues back and forth until debate is completed.

6. An amendment should not affect the bill in more than one place.

7. A bill is subject to amendment in two degrees; 3rd degree amendments are not in order.

8. An amendment can be divided if it consists of 2 or more parts, each of which could be considered independently.

 

9. The same amendment can not be offered more than once.

(1) It is not in order to consider an amendment that proposes only to amend language that has already been amended.

(2) An amendment must be germane (if it is not, it is subject to a point of order). The Chair rules on questions of germaneness. The tests of germaneness are:

a. an amendment must relate to the subject matter under consideration;

b. the fundamental purpose of the amendment must be germane to the fundamental purpose of the bill.

c. the amendment when considered as a whole should be within the jurisdiction of the committee;

d. an individual proposition may not be amended by another individual proposition even if they are of the same class;

e. a specific subject may not be amended by a provision general in nature; and,

f. a general subject may be amended by specific propositions of the same class.